At the Waldorf Astoria / at the Sands

I couldn't wait 'til this CD arrived in the mail. I'm a hardcore Lena fan and I have owned the Lena at the Waldorf LP since I was a teen. What still gets me is how fresh it all still sounds. And those arrangements! Every student of popular singing (or singing period) should own this compilation. Her phrasing, intonation, her sense of time, her immaculate diction and just the way she puts over the song as a whole. I would venture to say that more singers than we realize are influenced (perhaps unconsciously) by Miss Horne. Just listen to the attitude and attack in the some of the 60's recordings of Streisand or recordings of Diahann Carroll, Johnny Mathis,Nancy Wilson,etc. I say all this to say, if you don't own this, you should!

"I Said No" on the Jule Styne Medley is worth the price of admission all by itself, and there is so much more. I'm just blown away by Lena "At the Sands." Total genius. This is an absolute MUST HAVE.

If you are a fan of Lena this is must have

LIVE MUSIC AND LIVE THEATRE AT ITS BEST.

One of her finest records.

I received the CD promptly but it wasn't exactly as I expected. I had hoped it would be more like 'torch' music instead of the jazzy, big-band sound. We sent the CD to my father-in-law and he is enjoying it. He's 79. Thanks

By 1957 Lena Horne had, but for RCA studio recording, abandoned Hollywood since the film studios had callously abandoned her singular artistry and glamour. The year was optimal for Horne's return to her hometown, with this major Waldorf gig in February and busy preparation for opening the Arlen-Harburg musical JAMAICA in October in an unusually competitive Broadway season (the show would run fully 17 months, entirely on the Metro star power of Horne and Montalban). The popular Waldorf concert, expertly produced by RCA's Dick Peirce, is one of the finest live recordings ever commercially released, ranking with Miss Garland at Carnegie Hall (or for that matter Artur Rubinstein or Buck Owens at Carnegie, both differently energized by that venue) or Dietrich in London. Horne (pushing 40 and with vocal sizzle to spare) and the Hayton band are warmly, intimately recorded, and the singer immediately establishes palpable rapport with her awed audience: We've Rube Bloom and Johnny Mercer's great "Day in, day out" and an interesting Ellington medley, where Horne tentatively attempts jazz singing, though she was never an improviser (years later Horne perfected her Ellington repertoire through her close friendship with soulmate Billy Strayhorn). Indispensably there are four Cole Porter songs here: the closer "It's all right with me" and the select rarities "After you" and "Love of my life" nestled within her Porter medley. For special sizzle Horne (who began as a Cotton Club danseuse) slinks through "New fangled tango" with peerless innuendo and sultriness. And say—isn't that Cole Porter himself, lamed but debonair, descending from Towers suite 33A to applaud his foremost sophisticated interpreter?Lena Horne's Hollywood creds were unimportant in worldly Manhattan, but in Jack Entratter's Vegas they signified greatly, and the hotelier was forced to "give the lady what she wants." Like most professional singers Lena Horne balked at singing in frigidly air-cooled showrooms. Gaseous refrigerants directly affect the vocal cords and, in Horne's case, the performer's mood and artistic temperament. Horne famously balked, put her dainty foot down, flashed some angry-diva temperament, and the Entratter management were forced to moderate the Sands HVAC extremes whenever La Horne did Vegas.You can sense this tension (Horne cool as a Ramos gin fizz, the passive audience sweating in desert torpor) in her slightly disappointing November 1960 Sands gig, also produced (with some edits and a very abrupt ending) by Dick Peirce: The Hayton band is brightly recorded, the arrangements brassed up for Vegas high-rollers, while Horne's voice is muffled and her performance somewhat remote and distanced, lacking the more intimate rapport of the Waldorf gig. Her playlist doesn't duplicate the 1957 set, but apart from the rushed opener "From this moment on" Cole Porter’s soigné urbanity is missing (in lieu there's a coy Rodgers-Hammerstein medley that I find unlistenable). The playlist improves, hiply, with the Bacharach-Shaw "Out of my Continental mind," an offbeat Jule Styne medley with three rarely heard songs, also a choice Yip Harburg medley that includes "The begat"—yet there are far too many cut-and-run medleys (the last resort of any disinvolved chanteuse) here. Horne had recorded just a year earlier the Burke-Van Heusen "Get rid of Monday" for her neglected studio album A FRIEND OF YOURS, and that version is punchier than this live remake.The Vegas gig is pure showbiz, vintage Entratter/Sands frivolity, the Haytons artistically aloof from the dated Rat Pack chumminess or Keely Smith wailing offkey with Prima and Butera—and after her consistently brilliant Waldorf album almost any Horne live set would be a downer (except for the stupendous 1981 one-woman show and her cabaret-style 1994 Supper Club gig). These historic shows are smartly paired in this set, but the contrast between them couldn't be greater: Lena Horne sizzling hot on her Manhattan home turf (and in the physical presence of Cole Porter), icily remote facing distracted gamblers in that surreally artificial Nevada showroom. Horne, having other legendary composers in her intimate circle, infrequently sang Styne, Styne-Sondheim or Burt Bacharach, and this strangely lopsided Vegas playlist testifies to her boldness in appropriating new material by younger composers to diversify her sophisticated-chanteuse repertoire. In another decade, after considerable personal turmoil, Horne would “grow into” Bacharach-David (“Message to Michael” on LENA AND GABOR) and Paul McCartney (“Maybe I’m amazed” on NATURE’S BABY)—and those composers were fortunate indeed to have Lena Horne’s unique patronage.

This excellent CD has all of the tracks from two of Lena Horne's live record albums entitled Lena Horne at The Waldorf Astoria and Lena at The Sands. These live recordings highlight Lena's exquisite voice and her excellent rapport with her adoring audiences. Indeed, Lena never skips a beat, singing with all her heart and soul on each and every tune. The sound quality is excellent on the tracks from Lena's performance at The Waldorf Astoria but it is not quite as good on the tracks from Lena's show at The Sands; but the electricity that was captured from both performances is so powerful that this becomes a minor quibble.We get a total of just under eighty minutes of Lena's terrific singing on this album; and every number shines brighter than silver and gold combined when Lena Horne sings it! There's not a dud in the bunch; but of course I have my favorites. Out of the tracks from Lena's show at The Waldorf Astoria, I love the opening song, "Today I Love Everybody." Lena chose a strong, upbeat opening song and she handles complex tempo and key changes like the pro she was and always will remain! "Let Me Love You" has an elegant piano arrangement to accompany Lena as she sings this so sweetly while "Come Runnin'" gets the royal treatment from Lena--and how's about that brass?There's a dynamic Cole Porter medley; but Lena's medley of "Mood Indigo" and "I'm Beginning to See the Light" impresses me even more. "Honeysuckle Rose" never sounded better than when Lena Horne sang it; and this live recording is no exception! "Day In-Day Out" gets a somewhat Latin sounding arrangement that all holds its own very well; and "New Fangled Tango" is actually very funny! Lena closes with "From This Moment On" much to the delight of her audience!We then have the tracks from Lena's show at The Sands. "Maybe" opens the show very well and the orchestra plays with a distinctly mid-twentieth century Vegas feel. Lena's voice is as clear as a bell and that's grand. Listen for her to outdo even herself as she performs "The Man I Love" with a striking musical accompaniment; and Lena makes magic come true with her outstanding interpretation of some songs by Jule Styne. The Jule Styne medley of "A Ride on a Rainbow/Never Never Land/I Said No/Some People" stuns me with its natural beauty and when Lena Horne sings it all with panache I love it!"You Don't Have To Know the Language" evokes quite a thrill; and that Rodgers and Hammerstein medley charms me completely. The album closes with Lena singing "Don't Commit the Crime" which has Lena squarely in the spotlight--right where she belongs! The humorous lyrics add a certain extra punch to the concert that is nothing less than wonderful.Lena Horne was invariably so very special; and although she has now passed away she will live on forever through her recordings and movie performances. This is a must-have for fans of the great Lena Horne; and even newcomers to Lena's artistry would do well to add this to their collections.

Voici enfin réunis sur un seul CD deux enregistrements publics de Lena Horne réalisés successivement en 1957 au Waldorf Astoria à New York et en 1960 au Sand's Hotel de Las Vegas.Dans les années 50, les disque publics étaient encore relativement rares et certains même de ces enregistrements publics sont en partie des enregistrements studio auxquels ont été ajoutés des applaudissements, comme par exemple le fameux disque de Peggy Lee au Basin' Street East.Ici, il n'y a aucun doute: Lena Horne est face à son public, elle passe manifestement de très bons moments, et le public en redemande.Il s'agit donc de deux concerts - mais on devrait plutôt parler ici de récitals - d'une rare qualité, à la fois très simples et pourtant très sophistiqués de par la personnalité même de l'artiste, donnés par une très grande dame de la chanson.

Wonderful music from a great singer, Lena Horne!

Certains jours, je rêve d'être né quarante ans plus tôt. Et ceci pour deux raisons : d'une part, avoir la chance d'assister aux merveilleuses prestations scéniques de la sublime LENA...et d'autre part, espérer pouvoir séduire la dame et transformer mon rêve en réalité...comment ça, j'délire ???...offrez vous les films : "Cabin in the sky" et "Stormy Weather"...vous comprendrez surement...!